Agitator for washing machines



March 14, 1939. J. c. NELSON AG'ITATOR FOR WASHING MACHINES Filed March '7, 1936 M INVENTUH awa TTDRNEY Patented Mar. 14, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT oFncE AGITATOR FOR WASHING MACHINES Application March 7, 1936, Serial No. 67,686 I 7 Claims.

My invention relates to washing machines and, more particularly, to a novel'agitator or dolly therefor.

An object of my invention is to provide an agi-' tator, adapted to be mounted in a washing vat for oscillation therein, capable of cleansing the clothes thoroughly and in a minimum length of time.

A further object of my invention is the provision of an agitator for a washing machine which is so constructed and arranged that the entire body of clothes throughout the depth of the liquid in the vat is subjected to the washing action of the agitator.

My invention further contemplates the provision of an agitator for a washing machine having means for alternately raising and depressing the fabrics whereby the clothes are more evenly distributed in the vat, and the clothes are subjected to a washing action throughout the depth of the liquid.

More specifically, my invention contemplates the provision of an agitator having a plurality of substantially radial blades extending substan- 0 tially from the bottom of the vat to or above the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, and a plurality of plates, each of the plates extending at an angle to the horizontal between a pair of adjacent blade faces and serving, when the agitator is oscillated, to alternately raise and depress the fabrics in the vat.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will be more apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a view showing the agitator of my invention and indicating a washing vat in which the agitator is mounted.

Figure 2 is a view taken on the line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

The agitator of my invention is adapted to be mounted in a vat or tub II in which the clothes and washing fluid are placed. The washing vat may be of any desired shape, either square or, as shown in the drawing, circular in cross section. The agitator, generally indicated by the numeral I2, is preferably mounted centrally of the vat H and is driven by a shaft l3 extending upwardly through the bottom of the vat. The drive shaft I3 may be driven by any suitable mechanism and from any suitable source of power, not necessary to be shown or described herein since such driving mechanism for oscillating the agitator is well known in the art to which this invention applies. Preferably, the shaft is driven in an oscillatory manner so as to drive the agitator through an arc of 180 degrees, more or less, and at a comparatively high rate of speed somewhere between fifty and sixty oscillations per minute.

The shaft |3 extends upward to or above the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, and the agitator I2 is preferably driven by the shaft in the manner described in the copending ap plication of Peter Eduard Geldhof, Serial No. 55,050, filed December 18, 1935. A sleeve l4, extending concentric with the agitator shaft l3, provides additional support for the agitator, as set forth in said application.

. The agitator itself comprises a preferably circular'bottom plate or base It which maybe substantially fiat, as shown in the drawing. A central post or hub ll, formed integral with the base, extends upward from the base concentric with the sleeve l4. Near the top of the post l1, and preferably formed integral therewith, is a flat horizontal plate l8 which is preferably somewhat smaller in diameter than the diameter of the base Hi. The top plate l8 marks the normal surface level of cleansing fluid and serves to prevent the upward splashing of cleansing fluid when the agitator is oscillated. A cap IQ, of any suitable shape, is mounted on the top of the agitator and serves to enclose the driving connection between the shaft I3 and the agitator l2.

Extending radially outward from the post I] are a plurality of blades 4| which extend from the base It to the top plate I8 and are preferably formed integral therewith. The upper portions of the blades extend outward and terminate at the periphery of the top plate l8 and these portions of the blades are, therefore, somewhat narrower in width than the radius of the base. Near their bottom portions, as at 2|, the width of the blades increases. Below this point, the blades extend outward and terminate at the periphery of the base. Below the point 2|, the blades are curved in horizontal cross section, as more clearly indicated in Figure 3, forming pockets 4!], each of which faces in a clockwise direction.

Between each pair of adjacent blades 4|, and extending at an acute angle of approximately 45 degrees to the vertical, is a plate 42. Each of the plates 42 is preferably a plane surface and extends from a point not far removed from the top of the blades 4|, as from the point 43, to a point 44, approximately similarly spaced from the bottom of the blades. Each of r the plates 42, from the point 43, which point, when projected downward upon the base, is spaced inwardly from the outer circumference thereof, has its outer edge curved downward and outward to a point 46 where the plate 42 extends beyond the periphery of the base. From the point 46, the outer edge of each of the plates extends downward and. curves slightly inward to a point 41 where the surface of the plate rounds downward and merges into the wide portion of the adjacent blade 4!.

When the agitator is operated in a vat containing clothes and washing fluid, preferably being driven in an oscillatory manner, at a speed of oscillation and amplitude as above indicated, the clothes and washing fluid are violently agitated and the clothes are subjected, by the blades 4| and the plates 42, to a thorough threaddeforming action which serves to loosen the dirt particles. The plates 42 serve not only as blades causing an alternate upward and downward movement of the clothes in the vat, but also serve, in a measure, to more evenly distribute the clothes vertically in the vat. With the ordinary agitator structure, the clothes, when well water soaked, tend to sink toward the bottom of the vat. By reason of the action of the plates 42, the clothes, instead of settling substantially in a body toward the bottom of the vat, in addition to being buoyed up by the rapid oscillations of the agitator, are also, to a certain extent, retained in the upper section of the vat by the plates 42, thereby increasing the effectiveness of the upper portion of the blades 4|. When the agitator is rotated in a clockwise direction, the blades 4| exert a powerful thrust on the clothes and washing fluid in that direction, and the plates 42 tend to push the clothes beneath the plates downward in a clockwise direction. When the agitator is reversed, the blades 4! exert a powerful thrust on the clothes and tend to cause them to move in a counterclockwise direction, and the plates 42 tend to push the clothes upward in a counterclockwise direction.

The pockets 40, because they all face in the same direction, tend to cause the clothes to move predominantly in a clockwise direction, but this tendency is largely overcome by the effect of the plates 42 and any tendency of the clothes to move in a clockwise direction is noticeable only at the bottom of the vat. The effect of the pockets 40 is overcome by reason of the fact that when the agitator is rotated in a clockwise direction, the plates 42 tend to cause the clothes and washing fluid to be circulated in a downwardly extending clockwise direction. When the agitator is rotated in the counterclockwise direction, the plates 42 tend to cause the clothes and washing fluid to circulate in an upwardly extending counterclockwise direction. However, because the action in the downwardly extending clockwise direction is partly resisted by the bottom of the vat, whereas, the action in the upwardly extending counterclockwise direction is not similarly resisted, the plates tend to cause a slight counterclockwise movement of the clothes and washing fluid. At times, a slight movement of the clothes near the surface of the cleansin fluid in a clockwise direction is noticeable.

While I have shown the preferred form of my invention, it will be apparent that various modiflcations and changes may be made in the form of theagitator and the relation of parts thereof without departing from the spirit of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An agitator adapted to be mounted in a vat containing clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, a central post extending upward to the normal surface level of cleansing fluid in the vat, a plurality of blades extending substantially radially outward from the base and from substantialhr the base to substantially the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, and a plate extending at an angle to the horizontal between each pair of adjacent blades,

both faces of each of said plates being exposed to the clothes.

2. An agitator adap ed to be mounted in a vat containing clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, a central post extending upward from the base, a plate mounted near the topof the post and deflning the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, a plurality of blades exposed to act upon the clothes and extending substantially radially outward from the post, each of said blades having at least a portion thereof curved in horizontal cross section, and a plate extending at an angle to the horizontal between each pair of adjacent blades, each of said plates having both faces exposed to the clothes.

3. An agitator adapted to be mounted in a vat containing clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, a central post extending upward from the base, and a plurality of blades extending outward from the post, each of said blades having at least a. portion thereof curved in horizontal cross section in the same direction, and a plurality of plates extending at an acute angle to the vertical, each of said plates lying between and being joined to a pair of adjacent blades.

4. An agitator adapted to be mounted in a .vat containing clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, .a central post extending upward from the base, a top plate mounted'near the top of the agitator and marking the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, a plurality of blades extending substantially radially outward from the post, said blades near their lower portions being increased in width and being curved in horizontal cross section, and a plate extending at an angle to the horizontal between each pair of adjacent blades, each of said plates merging at its lower portion with the widened portion of the adjacent blade.

5. An agitator adapted to be mounted in a vat containing clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, a central post extending upward to the normal surface level of cleansing fluid in the vat, a plurality of blades extending substantially radially outward from the base, and a plate having its entire surface lying above the lower edges of the blades and extending at an angle to the horizontal between and joined to each pair of adjacent blades.

6. An agitator adapted to be mounted in a vat containing clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, a central post extending upward to the normal surface level of cleansing fluid in the vat, a plurality of blades exposed to act upon the clothes and extending substantially radially outward from the base and from substantially the base to the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, and a substantially flat plate lying above the lower edges of the blades and extending at an angle to the horizontal between and being joined to each pair of adjacent blades, each of said plates being exposed to the clothes and adapted to exert a 76 raising and lowering action thereon as the agitator is oscillated.

7. An agitator adapted to be mounted in a vat containing. clothes and washing fluid, said agitator comprising a base, a central post extending upward from the base, a top plate mounted near the top of the agitator and marking the normal surface level of cleansing fluid, a plurality of blades extending from the base to the plate and extending substantially radially outward from the post, said blades near their lower portions being increased in width and being curved in horizontal cross section, and a plate extending at an angle to the horizontal between each pair of adjacent blades, each of said plates merging at its'lower portion with the wider portion of the adjacent blade and being exposed to the clothes and being adapted to exert a raising and lowering action thereon as the agitator is oscillated.

JABEZ CURRY NELSON. 

